Stress as a truck driver

Stress as a truck driver can take a toll on your mind, entire body and health.

For truck drivers stress is always present in the workplace. With all the things truck drivers have to deal with on a daily basses its know wonder truck drivers in general have poor health. Learning how to reduce stress can improve a truck drivers mind, body and health not only will you feel better but also you just might enjoy you career more.

Quote from helpguide.org” It’s important to learn how to recognize when your stress levels are out of control. The most dangerous thing about stress is how easily it can creep up on you. You get used to it. It starts to feels familiar even normal. You don’t notice how much it’s affecting you, even as it takes a heavy toll.The signs and symptoms of stress overload can be almost anything. Stress affects the mind, body, and behavior in many ways, and everyone experiences stress differently. ”

Quote from medicinenet.com“ Excess stress can manifest itself in a variety of emotional, behavioral, and even physical symptoms, and the symptoms of stress vary enormously among different individuals. Common somatic (physical) symptoms often reported by those experiencing excess stress include sleep disturbances, muscle tension, muscle aches, headache, gastrointestinal disturbances, and fatigue. Emotional and behavioral symptoms that can accompany excess stress include nervousness, anxiety, changes in eating habits including overeating, loss of enthusiasm or energy, and mood changes, like irritability and depression. Of course, none of these signs or symptoms means for certain that there is an elevated stress level since all of these symptoms can be caused by other medical and/or psychological conditions. ”

Quote from webmd.com” Some stress is normal and even useful. Stress can help if you need to work hard or react quickly. For example, it can help you win a race or finish an important job on time.But if stress happens too often or lasts too long, it can have bad effects. It can be linked to headaches, an upset stomach, back pain, and trouble sleeping. It can weaken your immune system, making it harder to fight off disease. If you already have a health problem, stress may make it worse. It can make you moody, tense, or depressed. Your relationships may suffer, and you may not do well at work or school. “

Two of the biggest things that cause stress as a truck driver and how you can reduce truck driver stress:

TrafficTraffic is one of the most stressful parts of a truck driver’s day, with all the traffic and the stupid actions of other drivers on the road it’s no wonder this is a big one.
One of the easiest ways to reduce traffic stress is to increase your following distance and is a personal favorite of mine and will not only reduce the stress level it will reduce you risk of an accident

D.O.T.The coops are open, hearing this term alone over the CB radio can send the stress level of a lot of truck drivers thru the roof, even more so if you company is not on good terms with the D.O.T.
One of the easiest ways to reduce D.O.T. stress is to keep you log book up to date and work for a company that uses newer equipment as well as having a good report with D.O.T.

Quote from articlesbase.com” Here are a few tips so you can get relaxed. When your relaxed you can sleep better, and that will hopefully give you more energy the next day and reduce your overall stress levels.

1. Remember that today may just be a bad day and that tomorrow is going to be a new day. This can be helpful when you get agitated or when you feel like life has put a dark cloud over you for the day. If you remember that tomorrow will be a new day, this may let a few things that normally bother you take back seat to your new optimism.

2. Make an honest effort to do something nice for someone. If you can look back in your life and remember when you last did something nice for someone you will probably remember feeling a little proud of your gesture. So, do something nice like hold a door for someone of slow down and let someone in your lane. Doing these nice things will reduce your levels of stress.

3. Truck driving jobs can be especially stressful when your running late with a load. Try to improve your trip planning. Some things are going to be out of your control, but constantly finding ways to plan your trips more efficiently will take some of that stress away.

4. This might be a tough one for jobs truck drivers do , but eating healthy can certainly help to reduce stress and can even help prevent depression from setting in. Try some fresh fruit like an apple or banana. Another healthy alternative to that chili cheese dog is a granola bar. Stress relief should come from knowing you made a healthy food choice.

5. There is no better way to relieve stress than to get some exercise. When your on the road it may be very hard to go to jog a 5k but you could definitely do a few laps around your truck, or park farther away so you have to walk a little farther to get that next granola bar.

Stress relief is important for truck drivers. If not handled some drivers end their careers unnecessarily. If your truck jobs can be made less stress full with these tips then we have reached our goal. CDL driver jobs can be exciting and fulfilling. Many people believe if the stress were removed from job than truck drivers really would be on a paid vacation to drive across the country. “

2 responses

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